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FEBRUARY 2018 |
beautylaunchpad.com
|
79
"As a kid growing up in the
suburbs of London, I sometimes
accompanied my mom to her
salon appointments. I loved the
energy and creativity, and as I
got older, the connection I found
between fashion and hair. It
looked like an exciting career.
At 14, a teacher asked what
I'd be when I grew up. Always
a bit of a rebel, I proclaimed,
'A hairdresser!' He laughed at
me. And that was the moment
I decided to prove him wrong.
The fi rst time I cut someone's
hair and saw the smile on her
face was the fi rst time I felt
successful in my career. It
was a small moment, but the
simple things are often most
meaningful."
"There was never a time in my life
when I didn't know I was destined
to be a stylist. As a young girl, I
found comfort by closing myself in
a room with my mannequin head
and fashioning its tresses; I styled
Barbie's hair, too. Now the same
childhood calm comes over me
when I move hair and it transforms
into something beautiful. And that
stillness morphs into excitement
after I put a model in front of a
camera and the look comes alive.
There have been bumps along my
career path: I was too young and
inexperienced when opening my
salon, but I also learned a valuable
lesson; namely, self-discipline.
While struggling, I never stopped
studying, practicing my craft or
developing these skills."
"My mother was in her late 30s when her hair went silver, and
her hairdresser started giving her stuffy styles. She was a
young woman made to look old, and I couldn't stand that. I'd
brush and tease out her hair when she got home, combing out
'grandma' to make her cool. It was the '60s, and I was in love
with Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe. I'd
look at the cuts Vidal Sassoon created in magazines and try to
copy them—tease the crown, get fronts straight and fl at, make
everything geometric. In high school, I did hair for all the girls'
proms and senior pictures. I came from a small town and wanted
everyone to look glamorous! I've been through so many changes. I remember when supermodels were the
stars, then it shifted to celebrities. I've worked with Farrah Fawcett, Madonna, Sophia Loren and Nicole
Kidman. But everything came full circle when my dream to style Audrey Hepburn was realized."
Andrew Dale, founder
and CEO of UNITE
Beth Minardi, founder of Beth
Minardi Signature
Detra Smith, artistic
director for Hot Tools
Garren, celebrity
stylist and
cofounder of R+Co
"Even as a child, I felt the impact
images can make. My aunt was a
painter who introduced me to color,
and I loved learning how it behaves
when intermixed. Color has power.
After graduating from Murwood Beauty
Academy in Orlando, FL, I worked on
my fi rst fi lm, The Meal—starring Dina
Merrill and Carl Betz in 1975. That's
when I fully understood the magic
surrounding hair and makeup—and
I was sold. Later I fell in love with the
fi rst fab foil highlight I successfully
placed while working at Clairol in New
York. To this day, the contrast of shades
in tresses and cosmetics continue to
intrigue as much as they did when I
was young."
COURTESY
OF
ARTISTS
AND
MANUFACTURERS